Memories
by The Shadow Princess
Summary: A oneshot about how Akashi Seijuro discovered Kuroko Tetsuya and became his friend. Akashi started changing and eventually broke Kuroko and left him behind. After the Winter Cup, they met once again but both didn't know what to say to each other. I suck at summary... If you want to know more, read the story!


**A/N : **Hello there, minna-san. This is my first fanfiction so it may not be that great. If there's ever anything you would like to say about this fanfiction that could help me improve in the future, you are more than welcomed to review... Sorry for all this stupid blabbering.. Well then, go ahead and start reading! Hope you enjoy it!

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**Kuroko Tetsuya's P.O.V.**

I was walking to my high school, Seirin High. The Winter Cup had ended a few days ago with Seirin's win. I was enjoying the calming winter breeze when I spotted a redhead with heterochromatic ruby and golden eyes which belongs to no other than my former basketball captain and leader of the Generation of Miracles, Akashi Seijuro. I tried to walk away from him but my eyes wandered off to take one final glance at him. He looked at me with a bored expression as if I was nothing but a nuisance to him.

I tried to bite back my tears which were threatening to fall from my sky blue orbs. It was very painful to witness the one you cared about most not showing any interest in you when you have not met the said person for about a year. Without waiting any further, I ran away from him, unable to hold back my tears any longer.

After running for a few minutes, I turned around a corner and stopped, trying to catch my breath as I have a low stamina. I double checked my surrounding to make sure there was no sign of Akashi-kun. When I saw no one in sight, I looked at my hand as tears flowed down my cheeks endlessly as if it was a river. I started sobbing harder and harder as the beautiful yet painful memories of me and Akashi-kun flooded back to me like a tsunami.

**Flashback (still Kuroko Tetsuya's P.O.V.)**

_It has been almost one and a half year since I have joined the basketball club in Teiko Middle School. Nevertheless, I am still in the third string since the beginning and have not improved since then. Although I kept on telling myself to never give up and keep on trying, I am starting to realize that maybe I am just not cut out for basketball. I started to think about quitting basketball and live on as the so called 'invisible boy' in school due to my thin presence. All of those negative thoughts were washed away when I met the captain, Akashi Seijuro. _

_It was another normal school day and I stayed back for a few hours after basketball practice as I usually did. Although I know I am going nowhere with extra practice, I kept on trying harder as I am quite a stubborn boy. I held onto my belief that one day I will be able to stand on the court as an important player; I believed that one day I will be noticed. I practiced in the empty third gym since people rarely use it as it was rumoured to be haunted. I was too absorbed with practice that I did not realize someone was observing me from the gym entrance. It was only when he spoke up I noticed the person._

_It was a boy slightly taller than me. He had silky crimson red hair which appeared very soft to touch and stood out with his pale yet smooth skin. He had beautiful ruby red eyes which looked like they are able to see right through people. I stiffened as I saw the boy crossed his arm over his chest, looking displeased. That was when I remembered he was our new basketball club captain. I heard from some of my classmates that our new captain's name was Akashi Seijuro. Rumour has it that he is a sadist who threatens to kill those who opposes him or defies him without hesitation and was feared throughout the whole school. I gulped and trembled in fear. _

_"__Practice ended an hour ago. Why are you still here?" he stroke up a conversation._

_"__I… I… Ummm, well… You see…" I stumbled upon my words, confused whether I should to tell the truth or lie._

_"__Spit it out!" he shouted._

_"__I was practicing…" I said with my head hung low._

_"__Alone?" he asked, sounding shocked._

_I nodded, not having enough courage to look at him._

_"__Well, that's quite rare. What's your name?" he asked._

_"__Kuroko Tetsuya."_

_"__I believe you know me already but I guess I'll introduce myself. My name is Akashi Seijuro, the captain of Teiko Basketball Club." he extended his hand to me._

_I hesitated at first but then shook his hand. His hand was warm, unlike my cold ones. I stole a glance at him and found him smiling a genuine smile at me and smiled back at him. I don't know why but for some reason I feel comfortable around him._

_"__Tetsuya, which string are you from?" he said, quirking an eyebrow._

_"__Third string…" I whispered, looking at the gym floor as if it was the most interesting thing in the whole world._

_"__Oh. Tetsuya, I am very interested in you. It seems that you have a very special talent which can come in handy in basketball games. Why don't you go home for now and think about my words? I am expecting to hear your answer by tomorrow." he said._

_I was dumbfounded but complied with his orders. I went to the locker room to change into my school uniform as my sweatshirt was dirty before packing my stuff. Once I was done packing, I bid him goodbye and walked home alone._

_After finishing my homework, I lied down on my bed and thought about Akashi-san's words… _

_'__Special talent? What did he mean by that? The only thing special about me is I have a very thin presence which is close to invisible that nobody ever notices my presence…' I thought to myself._

_As I was about to close my heavy eyelids, I finally got the answer I needed. My weak presence is my special talent. It comes in handy in basketball because it gives me the opportunity to steal the ball and pass it to my teammates without letting the opponents notice. 'MISDIRECTION' is my specialty. With misdirection, I can support the rest of the team with my passes and at the same time I will be able to control the flow of the game._

**_THE NEXT DAY…_**

_I woke up earlier than usual and got ready to school. I ate some light breakfast and ran all the way to school. It usually takes a fifteen minutes' walk for me to get to school but I managed to arrive within seven minutes. Once I reached the school gates, I was already a panting mess. After finally being able to get a hold of myself, I walked straight to the third gym as I believed Akashi-san will be there. Turned out I was right. I walked towards him as he stared me down._

_"__Have you gotten the answer yet, Tetsuya?" he asked, grinning._

_"__Yes, Akashi-san."_

_"__What is it?"_

_I explained to him everything that I found out yesterday night. When I was done with the explanation, he ruffled my teal hair and said a "Well done, Tetsuya." I glanced at him and saw a very kind and gentle smile plastered on his handsome face._

_From that day onwards, he became my private coach and taught me things I needed to know. As time passed by, we got closer to each other and I started to call him 'Akashi-kun' instead of 'Akashi-san'. Later on, we found out that our houses were in the same direction and started walking home together every day. _

_One day, when both us were on our way home, I got tired and decided to take a little rest on the bench in an empty playground. I was about to stand up when I noticed a hand offered to me. It was Akashi-kun's hand. His back was facing me and he was looking the other way, a slight tint of pink hue was visible on his pale cheeks. I was shocked at first but tried to take hold of his hand. Once our fingers were intertwined perfectly, he tightened his grip and we walked down the street hand in hand, not caring about the stares we got from some by passers._

**End of Flashback**

**Akashi Seijuro's P.O.V.**

I was taking a walk in Tokyo as I just finished a practice match with some high school in the area. As I was strolling along the familiar streets, I noticed a mop of teal hair which belonged to the person I used to be so close with, Kuroko Tetsuya. I did not want to witness Tetsuya's pained expression as I will definitely feel guilty since I was the one who made him this way.

I faked a cold gaze at him, thinking he would leave me alone once he realized I did not want him there. However, the outcome was the total opposite. Instead of keeping his signature blank face and walking away like I was not there at all, I saw tears rolling down his porcelain cheeks. I widened my eyes in disbelief. I never thought I would be able to make such a strong-willed boy turn to someone so fragile.

As time pass by, I started to feel guilty. All of this happened because of me. If I did not make Tetsuya feel so worthless back then in Teiko, I may not see his tear streaked face which shadowed with sorrow. If I was not so careless with my words back then, maybe we could still be close to each other like how we used to be.

I was about to apologize to him before he took off, not bothering to take another look at me anymore. I stared at Tetsuya's retreating back longingly, unable to bring myself to run after him, assuming that he deserved much better than all this pain I caused him. He was now in Seirin High's basketball team, a team which cared for him and treated him as if he was something precious. A team which made him smile, unlike me.

**Flashback (still in Akashi Seijuro's P.O.V.)**

_I grew attached to Tetsuya as we spent more time with each other. It started off with only basketball practice, then we started hanging out and finally we started to walk each other home._

_Everyday after basketball practice, we would always walk home together and I picked up the habit of taking Tetsuya's slightly smaller and frail looking hand in my bigger warm one during our walk home. At first, it felt awkward but we got used to it eventually._

_Everything was perfect just the way it is until some problems occurred. Aomine Daiki, Teiko's ace and Tetsuya's 'light' (as in partner) started skipping practice with the excuse that practicing will make him become stronger which leads to the opponents losing the will to play their hardest against him. Although I dislike the fact he was skipping practice, Daiki has got a point. Ever since I became Teiko's captain while Daiki, Ryota, Shintaro, Atsushi and Tetsuya became the regular players, we have always won each game we played as if it was as easy as breathing._

_Things took turn for the worse when Daiki decided to cut off his 'light and shadow' partnership with Tetsuya, thinking he was getting too strong that no opponent was good enough to defeat him and deemed that he no longer needs Tetsuya._

_Later on, Tetsuya came to me, crying for his 'light' who abandoned him. Tetsuya was never one to express his true feelings but when he did, it means that the person who broke his signature expressionless mask was very dear to him. Seeing him in such a state makes my blood boil and urges me to punch the life out of Daiki, which I restrained from doing, knowing Tetsuya will never forgive me if I did so._

_"__It's okay, Tetsuya. Everything will be fine. Even if all of them leave you, there's no need for you to worry. I will always be here for you, no matter what." I said, rubbing circles on his back._

_"__Promise, Akashi-kun. Promise that you will never ever leave me alone, that you will stay with me forever." he said, his slender arms around my neck, hugging me desperately._

_"__Don't you trust me, Tetsuya?" I tried to enlighten to tense atmosphere but to no avail._

_"__Please, Akashi-kun. Onegai…" he pleaded, looking at me with his teary puffy red eyes caused by all the crying earlier._

_He tightened his embrace, not even thinking about letting me go. I looked at him in his broken state and found myself promising him that I will never cast him aside, let alone leaving him behind. I saw his eyes brightened slightly and hugged him back. Unfortunate for Tetsuya, I did not keep my promise. Instead, I was the one who made him shatter to pieces._

**End of Flashback**

**Kuroko Tetsuya's P.O.V.**

I still remember the promise he made, the warmth I felt whenever he was close to me and the beautiful memories we made together. No matter how hard I try to lock them away, it had always found its way back to me but it's no use. Whatever happens, things will never go back to the way it used to be. I have always known that trusting him would end up hurting me but I still trusted him as he had always treated me specially.

I continued staring at my hand which was longing for the warmth from Akashi-kun's hand and started sobbing. I wanted to tell him how I really feel but I did not have the guts to do so. In the end, I'm the pathetic one huh?

Then came the time when he deemed me worthless. He even told me to quit basketball saying that I am a player that cannot guarantee him a win.

**Flashback (still in Kuroko Tetsuya's P.O.V.)**

_I was practicing alone like how I usually did like when I was in the third string since my 'light' had abandoned me. I tried to shoot when I heard light footsteps approaching me from the back. I turned around and found Akashi-kun walking towards me._

_I was about to greet Akashi-kun when I noticed that something was definitely off with him. Instead of the usual happy and gentle expression he wore around me, I was met with a different side of Akashi-kun. His gaze was cold and his left eye which used to be ruby red was now the colour of gold. _

_"__Akashi-kun, your eye…" I trailed off._

_"__That's none of your concern, Tetsuya." he said in a harsh tone, his golden eye gleaming slightly._

_I got scared and trembled slightly. No, this is not the Akashi-kun I know. He stepped closer to me and I started to back away. Even so, it did not stop him. I continued backing away until I felt the gym walls colliding with my back. Akashi-kun took this opportunity to close the gap between us._

_Once we were standing right in front of each other, I knew I was completely trapped but decided to remain stoic. We stayed in awkward silence for a few minutes when he decided to speak._

_"__Tetsuya, you are no longer of use for us."_

_"__Huh? I don't understand." I stared at him in confusion._

_"__We do not need you anymore in the team, Tetsuya. Your passes and misdirection are no longer needed. We can win without you. I CAN WIN WITHOUT YOU. You'll just be a nuisance for us." he said._

_"__But… Akashi-kun…" I mumbled._

_I wanted to shake him to his senses but he slapped my hand away before it even reached him. Then, I saw him took out a pair of scissors from his breast pocket and held it close to my throat._

_"__You dare defy me, Tetsuya? My words are absolute. I have no need for a player who cannot guarantee a win for the team. Quit basketball, Tetsuya. It's not cut out for you at all. After all, no matter how much you struggle, you will never be able to stand at the top. You are just a SHADOW, Tetsuya. You will never stand above us. Since I always win, I'm always right', bear that in mind, Tetsuya." He said and walked away as if nothing happened._

_Once he was out of my sight, I unconsciously slid down the wall and hugged my legs to my chest, crying my heart out. They do not need me anymore; AKASHI-KUN does not need me. After coming back to my senses, I wrote a resignation letter to the basketball coach. Since then, I never met any of my teammates until graduation day._

_On graduation day, Akashi-kun summoned me and the Generation of Miracles to the gym. I was reluctant but still complied with his order, since his words were 'absolute'. I dragged my feet to the gym and found everyone was there except Akashi-kun._

_I greeted them and after a few minutes of waiting, he arrived. Just like the last time I saw him, his gaze was once again cold and his golden eye was gleaming. I was scared but decided to remain unfazed by the situation. The atmosphere was tense as everyone remained silent until Akashi-kun broke the silence._

_"__Daiki, Ryota, Shintaro, Atsushi and lastly Tetsuya, I have something that you have to do." He said, eyeing all of us. When none of us showed any reaction, he continued._

_"__From now on, we will no longer be a team. All of you shall go to different high schools. Even so, we will meet again on the court but neither of us will be on the same side. I expect all of you to try your best to defeat me in the upcoming matches although you'll never beat me. Afterall, I always win. Since I always win, I'm always right. Still, I want to know which one of you will be the best. That is all. You may leave." He said monotonously._

_I widened my eyes in disbelief. Why would he call me too? Why must I do this? All of these unanswered questions came across my mind. I have already decided that I'm never playing basketball ever again no matter how much I loved the sport. I do not want to have the feeling of being casted aside anymore._

_Ever since my parents passed away in a car accident a few years ago, I was left alone. No one cared for me, my grandparents wouldn't take me as I was the one who caused the car accident in their opinion. They think that I would bring bad luck wherever I go. Even so, I stayed strong and took care of myself with the money and wealth they left behind. Now that I was no use to anything including basketball, it's best to remain alone in the dark than staying in the light and hoping too much because I'll be thrown into the dark once again but with much more force._

_As I was drowning deeper in my own thoughts, Akashi-kun started speaking as if he was reading my mind._

_"__Tetsuya, I believe you know better than to defy me. You don't want it to be like last time, do you?" I raged in flames at his statement._

_"__I will definitely do my best. No, I will definitely defeat you soon enough, Akashi-kun. All of you, I will make sure you know your style of playing basketball is wrong. It's a promise." I said, eyeing each and every one of them. At that moment, my mind was a total blank. All I knew was I want to get stronger so that I can my friends back, I want to get the real Akashi-kun who cares for his teammates back._

**End of Flashback**

**Akashi Seijuro's P.O.V.**

Tetsuya is amazing indeed. He stayed true to his promise, he made us realize all of our wrongdoings, enduring all the pain he had to go through by doing so. Seeing his expression just now, made me realize how much he had been through. Being the expressionless person he had always been, he rarely shows any type of emotion. When he did, it would overflow since he suppressed them for a long time.

Now that I think about it, I must have hurt him a lot on the day I deemed him useless. Hell, what was I even thinking? I pushed back my bangs with my palm, disliking the way they were covering my eyes. I heaved out a frustrated sigh. In the end, I was the one who broke my promises. I was the one who casted him aside, when he trusted me with all his heart that I will stay with him. If anyone was useless in my situation right now, that should be me, not Tetsuya.

All this time, I was not able to lead them to the right path. I was the one who made them become the monsters they are. I was too obsessed with winning I forgot everything about having fun in the game. But Tetsuya never gave up and was able to lead us to the right path. Because of him, Ryota had learnt to never underestimate others, Shintaro had learnt the true meaning of friends, Daiki had found a formidable opponent, Atsushi had learnt to appreciate others' effort and he taught me to rely on my teammates instead of fighting alone and winning is not everything.

Although I'm very thankful to him, I never did show him any sign of gratitude. I did not even apologize for what I've done to make him suffer. I was the one who pushed him away from me and created the now elongating gap between us. No matter how regretful I am, I will never be able to turn back time and make things right. No matter how desperate I am, I will never see him smiling like he always did to me back then. All that's left now are just the beautiful memories of the times I've spent with him.

With that thought, I walked away to the train station where the Rakuzan team awaits. I went back to Kyoto and played back all the sweet memories I've had with my one and only Tetsuya. Tears started rolling down my cheeks.

**Kuroko Tetsuya's P.O.V.**

Once I was finally able to retrieve my expressionless mask, I resumed my walk to school. The cold winter wind blew past me and I started to shake from being out in the cold for quite a long time. I rubbed both my hands together in order to keep them warm and remembered how Akashi-kun would always offer his hand whenever it was cold. I was always hesitant but eventually accepted them anyway.

I looked up at the sky which was now covered with grey clouds above my head. If only I could look at him in the eye once more, touch his silky crimson red hair once more, if I could just grab hold of his warm hands one more time, I would do whatever it takes to not let him get out of my keen sight. I would pull him into a tight embrace and never ever let him go. No matter how much I hurt, I will never be able to bring myself to hate him. Even if it kills me, I still can't hate him.

I wanted to tell him how important and great his presence is to me but wasn't able to utter a single word to him when he is already right in front of me. No matter how much I comfort myself, my friendship with Akashi-kun can no longer be as wonderful as it used to be. The only remembrance I have of him are the enjoyable memories both of us spent most of our times making back when we were in middle school. I longed to be reunited with him one day but it was nothing other than mindless dreaming.

For once, I let my tears flow in public. I received plenty of stares from the strangers who were roaming the sidewalks but couldn't care less. My tears kept on trailing down my cheeks showing no sign of stopping, forming a stream of tears as I kept on walking forward, not looking back even once as I believed it's best for me and the others that way.


End file.
